A dog’s life in the later middle ages

I would not claim to be a dog lover. I appreciate and understand that very many people do find them to be companions and are very, often deeply, fond of them, but I must confess they leave me cold. A few unfortunate experiences as a child convinced me that the Clever Boy and the canine should keep their respective distance from each other. It does not help when one has had acquaintances who apparently prefer to talk to the mutt in the pub than to me on an evening out …

The popularity of dogs is undoubted and that this is not a new phenomenon as can be seen in an article I came across recently online. It is from the History Today website and was originally published in the magazine in 1979, and republished on their website in 2019.

It looks at the place of dogs in late medieval life, notably aristocratic households, at their role in hunting and as guard dogs, as well as at the various breeds, some very recognisable today, others less so. It is also a reminder of how human - and presumably canine - attitudes and actions do not change over the centuries. I still see people bringing their dogs into church as per the fifteenth century - and like some medievals I do not approve …

The illustrated article can be seen at The World of Medieval Dogdom